Valley
Bibeksheel Sajha contesting for 60 seats, with focus on Valley
The newly-formed Bibeksheel Sajha Party (BSP) on Thursday filed its nominations under the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system for the second phase of federal and provincial elections, scheduled for December 7. The second round of polls will take place in 45 districts for 128 federal seats and 256 provincial seats.The newly-formed Bibeksheel Sajha Party (BSP) on Thursday filed its nominations under the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system for the second phase of federal and provincial elections, scheduled for December 7. The second round of polls will take place in 45 districts for 128 federal seats and 256 provincial seats.
The BSP has filed their nominations from 60 constituencies, with much emphasis on Kathmandu Valley.
Party Coordinators Rabindra Mishra and Ujwal Bahadur Thapa have filed their nominations for the federal seats from Kathmandu-1 and Kathmandu-5 respectively. Former BBC journalist Mishra is expected to face a tough fight from influential Nepali Congress leader Prakash Man Singh, who had won from the constituency in the second Constituency Assembly elections in 2013.
Party central committee member and Spokesperson Surya Raj Acharya will contest for a federal seat from Kathmandu-2, where UML senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal has filed his candidacy from the left alliance. Other central committee members Subuna Basnet, Anupa Shrestha, Pukar Bam and Milan Pandey will contest in the federal elections from Kathmandu constituencies 4, 7, 8 and 9 respectively.
Shashi Bikram Shah is contesting the federal election from Bhaktapur-2, while Amir Raj Maharjan and Ujwal Krishna Shrestha have filed their nominations from Lalitpur constituencies 2 and 3 respectively. The party is counting on the performances of the Sajha Party and Bibeksheel Nepali Party in the local level elections in Kathmandu Valley where they had garnered respectable votes running separately.
The party has kicked off its campaign in key constituencies in the Valley with positive response from electorate, claimed BSP Spokesperson Acharya. “Voters are already fed up with these so-called major political parties. They have been looking for better options,” said Acharya.
The BSP leaders said their status as a new party in the political arena, which claims to provide an alternative for the old parties, is not the only factor behind public interest in the party.
“Just claiming to be different than other parties won’t be enough. There are many new parties,” said Acharya, adding, “The BSP candidates have the qualifications and expertise required for materialising the vision. And importantly, they have earned the trust of voters.”
The party has also fielded its candidates for federal seats from Chitwan, Lamjung, Dolakha, Rupandehi, Parsa, Jhapa, Ilam, Arghakhanchi, among others.
The party had submitted a list of 35 candidates under the proportional representation system.